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The Father Factor

There's still time to apply! Applications are due to NFI by Midnight Eastern Standard Time on Sunday, October 1, 2017.

National Fatherhood Initiative® (NFI) seeks applications from organizations that want to partner with NFI to expand the evidence-based 24/7 Dad® program within the community or communities they serve in select Midwestern states.

In June of this year, I had the honor to present during a webinar sponsored by the Center for the Study of Social Policy (CSSP). The webinar focused on how child welfare organizations and professionals can more effectively engage and serve young dads (under age 26). I shared how:

NFI President Christopher A. Brown sits on the Fatherhood Research & Practice Network (FRPN) advisory committee. FRPN has announced their next (and ninth!) free webinar for researchers and practitioners.

I get asked this question often during my trainings. My answer is always an emphatic, “Yes!”

I see many examples of successful fatherhood groups facilitated by women. In fact, you can find some of these facilitators on our Stories of Impact page. Check out the videos called Maine DOC, Fatherhood Initiative, and Fresno EOC.

National Fatherhood Initiative® (NFI) seeks applications from organizations that want to partner with NFI to expand the evidence-based 24/7 Dad® program within the community or communities they serve in select Midwestern states.

Likely, you’ve heard about our newest online resource for dads, Fathering in 15™. We’ve already had a number of organizations who are committed to the future of father engagement subscribe to this one-of-a-kind resource for dads!

In today's post, I want to share more details with you about exactly how this learning experience for dads works.

To begin, there are 15 topics covered, each using a similar format to make learning easy. Dad can complete each topic in about 15 minutes. There is also no facilitator required, meaning dads can go through it at their own pace. They can work on Fathering in 15™ on a computer or mobile device your center or organization, or you can assign dads to go through of Fathering in 15™ from afar (at home, on their home computer or mobile device). It can even be used in a correctional facility where web-based learning is accessible.

Let's dig in together to take a closer look at the future of father engagement.

You've got dads to serve, but no budget to hire staff to run a fatherhood program?

Do not fear, the future of father engagement is here!

We've heard your requests for something for dads that doesn't require curriculum or a facilitator. Something that is interactive and engaging that helps dads learn how to be better dads. So we created it.

Introducing Fathering in 15™, an affordable, interactive, online learning experience for organizations to use with the dads they serve. It enables dads to gain the knowledge and skills they need to play an engaged role in their children’s lives – from any location – at any time.

When I say “kids count,” what pops into your head? Write it down before you continue to read this post.

If you wrote something like:

Children are our future,

1, 2, 3, 4, 5…or

Of course kids matter, you idiot,

I won’t take offense…well, maybe a little offense, if you insulted my intelligence. (Only my wife and kids are allowed to insult my intelligence.)

Seriously, though, when I say “kids count,” I refer to the outstanding annual publication calledKids Countfrom the Annie E. Casey Foundation, arguably the most well designed publication on national and state level indicators of child well-being.

It means you should implement a fatherhood program within a broader array of programs and services that meet fathers’ needs beyond their role as a dad and that, at the same time, help them fulfill that role.

If you did read it, you might remember that I left you with a cliffhanger on Step 7: Using Facebook Ads. Facebook Ads are the newest "rage" for online advertising, mainly because Facebook is such a widely used social platform, and because their ads are quite budget-friendly.

Facebook Ads offer a unique channel for you to recruit dads because you have a lot of control over who sees the ad—meaning, you can target the specific types of dads you want to recruit into your center or program based on age range, interests, geographic location, and more.

An important (if not the most important) aspect of running a successful fatherhood program is engaging participants. Whether it's existing clients or new clients, you need to meet them where they're at and engage with them beyond the doors of your center.

That's where social media can play an important role in your success. And we're not just talking recruiting and retaining dads, but also delivering and reinforcing program content. But where should you begin? Which social media channel should you use? And who in your organization will do it?

Recently I presented on this very subject during a session at the Biennial Healthy Marriage and Responsible Fatherhood (HMRF) Conference in D.C. along with NFI Board Member, Maggie Spain. I will share the 7 steps we covered in the presentation here.

Article originally posted by The Washington Timeshere. Re-posted with permission from Roland Warren.

Several years ago, my youngest son and I began a regular practice of packing several backpacks with packaged food, toiletries and small Bibles, and heading to downtown Washington, D.C. to pass them out to the homeless. Most of the people we met were men, and soon I discovered something that truly surprised me.

Most of these men were fathers.

I remember a conversation with one homeless father who was in his early 50s, like me. He told me that he had been living on the streets for several years. When I queried him about his family, I was stunned to learn that he had seven adult children who lived in the D.C. area. However, he said he would not contact them because their relationship had frayed badly over the years.